Svalbard midnight sun seabirds

July 5, 2024 · Svalbard (Longyearbyen and Isfjorden), Norway · Cold, 40°F, clear with haze; sun never sets · Fujifilm X-T5, 150-600mm

Flew into Longyearbyen with a heavy bag. Spent four days on a small expedition boat around Isfjorden. The cliffs at Alkhornet were stacked with Brünnich’s Guillemots, and we watched polar bears on the beach from a safe offshore distance. Midnight sun makes photography strange — you can shoot at any time, but the light never quite gets better than a hazy gold.

I won’t forget watching a pod of belugas cross in front of the boat in total quiet at 2 a.m. because there was no ’evening’ to stop shooting.

Polar bear on far beach — From the boat, maybe a kilometer off. Polar Bear, distant 600mm, 1/1600s, f/6.3, ISO 2000

Bruennich's guillemot on cliff — At Alkhornet. Thousands on the cliff. Brünnich's Guillemot 500mm, 1/1000s, f/6.3, ISO 1250

Puffin on cliff edge — At the top of the cliff, classic pose. Atlantic Puffin 200mm, 1/1000s, f/6.3, ISO 200

Little auk in flight — Tiny. Hard to see, hard to photograph. Little Auk 400mm, 1/1250s, f/8, ISO 400

Ivory gull on ice floe — On a small floe. Clean white. Ivory Gull 400mm, 1/1000s, f/6.3, ISO 640

Kittiwake on cliff — Kittiwakes on every other ledge. Black-legged Kittiwake 300mm, 1/1250s, f/6.3, ISO 640

Arctic tern in flight — The most traveled bird on earth. Arctic Tern 350mm, 1/1250s, f/6.3, ISO 400

Beluga surfacing in calm water — Pod at 2 a.m., flat water. Beluga 600mm, 1/800s, f/8, ISO 1250

Wide view of fjord with midnight sun — Midnight from the deck. Svalbard fjord at midnight 23mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 400

Bearded seal on ice — Whiskers on full display. Bearded Seal 300mm, 1/800s, f/8, ISO 2000

Close view of purple saxifrage — Saxifrage in flower near camp. Arctic tundra bloom 23mm, 1/800s, f/8, ISO 1600

Glaucous gull on berg — Big gull on a small iceberg. Glaucous Gull 400mm, 1/1000s, f/6.3, ISO 1000

Svalbard reindeer grazing — Short-legged subspecies. Surprisingly tame. Reindeer, Svalbard 400mm, 1/1000s, f/7.1, ISO 800

Wide view of seabird cliffs — Cliff, roughly to scale. Svalbard cliff seabirds 23mm, 1/500s, f/5.6, ISO 160

Purple sandpiper on rock — Working the tideline. Purple Sandpiper 150mm, 1/800s, f/6.3, ISO 640